Vehicle wheel



W. S. GAUNTT.

VEHICLE WHEEL.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 20, I920.

Patented'lime 6,1922

2SHEETSSHEET 1- w. s. GAUNTT.

VEHICLE WHEEL. APPLICATION FILED JULYZO, I920. 1,418,557. P ent June 6, 1922.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

To all "whom it may con-cm:

: ill wire; a

WARREN s. eAUNTrfors'r. LOUIS, Missorim, nssieivoe or ommt omssm It; 4 McOORMICK}'OF"JACKSON, MISSOURI. 1 i

VEHICLE Be it known that I -WARREN 5. GA UN'rr, a

, citizen of the United States, residing at St Louis of. Missourn have nvented'certam new and in the county of St. Louis and State useful linorovementsin Vehicle W heels of I which the following is a specification.

in g said tire to protect it-from puncture, rim cuts and other damage encountered in run} 'ning over roads. flexible to allow the resilient tire to. expand III of Fig. 1.

lily invention relates to resilient wheels and it embraces a res lient tire preferably. of the pneumatic type and "a casing. enclos The casing is sufliciently and contract and thus perform'itscushion- I in g function of relieving the wheel of undue shock and vibration while running over the road. v I I In order'that'the invention may be fully understood, referencewill now be had to-the accompanying drawingsin which:

Fig. 1 is a sideelevation offa wheel constructed in accordance with the invention.

Fig. 2 is a side elevationvof the wheel with some parts of the casing removed to disclose the resilient inner tire. 3

- Fig. 3 is an enlarged section on lineIII-' Fig. 4 isan enlarged fragmentary section on line IV-IV of Fig. 3.

Fig. is a broken side elevation of one of the plates constituting the casing.

In carrying out the invention, I provide a casing consisting preferably of sheet metal and embodying a core 2 consisting of two circular members 4 and 6. The circular member 4 has an integral rim 8 and a mar ginal flange 10, while the circular member 6 has a removable marginal flange 1.2. The circular members 4 and 6 are reinforced near their peripheries with annular projections 14 and 16 and adjacent their axis with cir. cular projections 1.8 and 20, respectively; The removable flange 12 is secured to the circular core member 6 by suitable means such as screws 22. I 24 designates a pair of circular plates which are held in frictional engagement with the annular projections 14 and 16 on the circular core members 4 and 6 respectively, by a air of disks 26 connected by transverse .olts 28. Said bolts 28 fit snugly in carrier] 1 WHEEL.

Specification of Letters Iat'ent. Patented lillle fi, Application filed Jnly2Q,1920. Serial N5. 397,635. i

openings in the circular core members 4 and;

6 and in openings in the disks 26 thus holdi ing the core2; and saiddisks 26 infixe' d re lation to each other, while the plates 24 have limited independent movementtoffthe aforementioned parts blyreason of the relatively largeopenings 30 through which the bolts 28 freely extend. Each bolt 28 is provided adjacent one. end with shoulders 32' and near 1ts oppos te end with a sleeve 34 to hold the core 2 and thefidisks 26in spaced relation to. each other and; prevent them from binding too tightly against theplates 24,. when the nuts 36' are drawn up bolts 28. i

Bolts 88 coact' w'iththe bolts 28 in hold I mg the core 2 and the disks 26 together, and

one of the disks 26f is provid'ed with a hub 39 which entendslaxially through the core 2- and other disk 26 as disclosed/on- Fig; 3. 1

The plates"24 have large axial openings 40 through which the projections 18 and 20 on the circular core members 4 and 6, re-

spectively; freely extend, said openings 40 I being surrounded: by. inwardly extending.

flanges 42 which bear-againstthe adjacent sides of the core members '4 and 6. The

outer mar ins of the plates 24.13.13 within annular grooves 44 in the Oppositesides of a rim 46, which has a peripheral groove48 in i which aftire 50 is seated] Said tire 50 is,

preferably, made .of rubber fabric, 01*85 leather or it may be combination .of two or more of these. a

The rim 46 is provided with lugs 52 which fit within correspondingrecesses 54 in the margins of the plates 24 to preventsaid rim 46 fromslipping around uponthe plates 8 and the inner periphery of" the rim 46,

formv an annular chamber 58in which a cushioning element 60 is placed to-render 1 the wheel resilient. ment 60 consists preferably of the well- Said cushioning ele being. inflated presses against the. rims '8 and46 and yieldably holds them in proper relation to each other. The chamber 58 g known type of pneumatic tire,'which on i Wider than the tire 60, as disclosed on Fig. 3, to allow said tire to expand and contract and thus absorb shocks and vibration.

The inner tube 62 of the tire 60 is equipped with the usual air valve 64, which extends into the core 2 through an aperture 66 in the core rim 8, where it is connected by a coupling 68 to a tube 70 which extends inwardly towards the axis of the core 2, then laterally through the core member 6 and the abutting disk 26, so that it may be coupled to an air pump when the tire 60 is to be inflated. The outer end of the tube 70 is normally closed by a dust cap 72. Access'is had to the coupling 68 through an aperture 69 in the core member 6, when the adjacent plate21 and dial 526 are removed The tire 60 maybe readily installed or removed by removing the core flange l2, and the'adjacent plate 24 and disk 26.

By wholly enclosing the tire 60 in the easing as shown and described it is obvious that said tire 60 will be protected. from damage by obstacles along the road and from con tact with the surface of the road, and by making the casing flexible so that the rim 46 is free to move independently of the core rim 8 the desirable cushioning effect of the pneumatic tire is retained for absorbing shocks, vibration, etc.

'While I have shown and described the preferred form offlmy invention, I reserve the right to make such changes as properly fall within the spirit and scope of the appended claim.

Having thus described my invention, what 1 claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is: I

A wheel consisting of a hub, two internal circular members spaced apart and mounted upon said hub, a rim on one of said circular members, a resilient tire mounted upon said rim, concentric annular projections on said circular members, a pair of circular plates slidably engaging the outer annular projections and having inwardly extendingiflanges slidably engaging the two internal circular members, a pair of dlsks mounted on the hub and bear-in a ainst said circular lates and the inner annular projections of the internal circular members, means rigidly but removably uniting the hub, the internal v I circular members and said disks bolts eX- In testimony whereo'lFI afiiX my signature,

in the presence of two witnesses. VVAR-REN S. G-AUNTT.

l vitnesses FRED C, Fisonnn, L. J. FlSOHER. 

